removing engine valves

Not sure if this warrants a new thread, but here goes...

Got a valve spring compressor (cheap garbage) now. I'm possibly being
thick, but how do the damned valves come apart? How much am I
supposed to have to compress the spring?

Haynes is fantastically vague, and I've never done this before...

Read elsewhere on the internet about clonking them with a socket and a
bloody big hammer - how does that help - presumably it would fly all
over the damned garden and bend the valve....

--

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 88" aka "Stig"
'03 Volvo V70
'06 Nissan Navara aka "The Truck"

Tim Hobbs wrote:

> Not sure if this warrants a new thread, but here goes...
>
> Got a valve spring compressor (cheap garbage) now. I'm possibly being
> thick, but how do the damned valves come apart? How much am I
> supposed to have to compress the spring?
>
> Haynes is fantastically vague, and I've never done this before...
>
> Read elsewhere on the internet about clonking them with a socket and a
> bloody big hammer - how does that help - presumably it would fly all
> over the damned garden and bend the valve....
>
Compress the valve spring with the forked end of the compressor and the
solid end on the valve head. If it will not compress without busting the
compressor, give the forked end and the spring (but not the end of the
valve) a gentle tap with a hammer while pressure is on the compressor to
unstick the collets, as they are a taper fit into the washer on top of the
valve spring and may be wedged too firmly for the (cheap) compressor to
free them. A socket is a convenient way to do this. The spring probably
needs to compress about six millimetres or so. The split collets will then
be loose and can be removed with long nose pliers if they do not fall out
(depends which way up you have everything). Try not to lose them - they are
small and disappear easily, and while they can be replaced, it is a bit of
bother you don't need.
Hope this helps,
JD

On 2006-04-22, Tim Hobbs <[email protected]> wrote:

> Got a valve spring compressor (cheap garbage) now. I'm possibly being
> thick, but how do the damned valves come apart? How much am I
> supposed to have to compress the spring?

When I did another car of mine, I put the flat jaw of the spring
compressor on the piston-side of the valve and the collar jaw of the
compressor on the top of the spring and cap, then squeezed. This
compressed the spring by a centimetre or so, allowing me to prod at
the small semi-circular wedges that fit into a groove around the top
of the valve until the wedges fell out into the muck on the garage
floor. At that point, when releasing the spring compressor the cap
could be removed, the spring taken off and the valve pushed out.

--
Blast off and strike the evil Bydo empire!

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 07:18:46 +1000, JD <[email protected]>
wrote:

>Tim Hobbs wrote:
>
>> Not sure if this warrants a new thread, but here goes...
>>
>> Got a valve spring compressor (cheap garbage) now. I'm possibly being
>> thick, but how do the damned valves come apart? How much am I
>> supposed to have to compress the spring?
>>
>> Haynes is fantastically vague, and I've never done this before...
>>
>> Read elsewhere on the internet about clonking them with a socket and a
>> bloody big hammer - how does that help - presumably it would fly all
>> over the damned garden and bend the valve....
>>
>Compress the valve spring with the forked end of the compressor and the
>solid end on the valve head. If it will not compress without busting the
>compressor, give the forked end and the spring (but not the end of the
>valve) a gentle tap with a hammer while pressure is on the compressor to
>unstick the collets, as they are a taper fit into the washer on top of the
>valve spring and may be wedged too firmly for the (cheap) compressor to
>free them. A socket is a convenient way to do this. The spring probably
>needs to compress about six millimetres or so. The split collets will then
>be loose and can be removed with long nose pliers if they do not fall out
>(depends which way up you have everything). Try not to lose them - they are
>small and disappear easily, and while they can be replaced, it is a bit of
>bother you don't need.
>Hope this helps,
>JD

Don't forget to remove the valve stem seals and fit new ones - AFTER
you have ground the valve seats in.

Alex

"JD" wrote
> Tim Hobbs wrote:
>
>> Not sure if this warrants a new thread, but here goes...
>>
>> Got a valve spring compressor (cheap garbage) now. I'm possibly being
>> thick, but how do the damned valves come apart? How much am I
>> supposed to have to compress the spring?
>>
>> Haynes is fantastically vague, and I've never done this before...
>>
>> Read elsewhere on the internet about clonking them with a socket and a
>> bloody big hammer - how does that help - presumably it would fly all
>> over the damned garden and bend the valve....
>>
> Compress the valve spring with the forked end of the compressor and the
> solid end on the valve head. If it will not compress without busting the
> compressor, give the forked end and the spring (but not the end of the
> valve) a gentle tap with a hammer while pressure is on the compressor to
> unstick the collets, as they are a taper fit into the washer on top of the
> valve spring and may be wedged too firmly for the (cheap) compressor to
> free them. A socket is a convenient way to do this. The spring probably
> needs to compress about six millimetres or so. The split collets will then
> be loose and can be removed with long nose pliers if they do not fall out
> (depends which way up you have everything). Try not to lose them - they
> are
> small and disappear easily, and while they can be replaced, it is a bit of
> bother you don't need.

And when replacing them make sure they remain seated properly as you slowly
release the valve compressor, if not they can take flight.
On another engine I once watched as one collet bounced off the garage wall
and dropped right down the pushrod holes in the block! Couldn't do it again
if you tried.

--
Regards
Bob
"Never get so busy making a living
that you forget to make a life"

Tim Hobbs wrote:
> Not sure if this warrants a new thread, but here goes...
>
> Got a valve spring compressor (cheap garbage) now. I'm possibly being
> thick, but how do the damned valves come apart? How much am I
> supposed to have to compress the spring?
>
> Haynes is fantastically vague, and I've never done this before...
>
> Read elsewhere on the internet about clonking them with a socket and a
> bloody big hammer - how does that help - presumably it would fly all
> over the damned garden and bend the valve....

It's posts like this that make me thankful that many years ago I invested in
a nice valve spring compressor with a built in slide hammer just above the
collet pusher - cost me around UK150 in the '70s but money well spent, I
never need to use force, and the collet pusher lets me safely get the split
collets out from either side. I hardly ever use it these days but would
never part with it 'cept from my cold dead fingers

A gentle tap of the valve top with a 1/2" socket astride the valve stem
will help you though ... takes very little force to break the tapered
collet's grip. Too much of a hit & the valve spring will tighten it up again
on the rebound.

Karen

Karen

--
"I'd far rather be happy than right any day."
- Slartibartfast

Karen Gallagher wrote:

> A gentle tap of the valve top with a 1/2" socket astride the valve stem
> will help you though ... takes very little force to break the tapered
> collet's grip. Too much of a hit & the valve spring will tighten it up again
> on the rebound.

A really good smack with a 5/8" spark plug socket and the collets jump
out inside the socket - super easy removal. (not that I'd reccommend
that approach any more than I'd reccommend using a 1/2" drive impact
wrench for undoing head studs). ;-)


--
EMB

EMB wrote:
> Karen Gallagher wrote:
>
>> A gentle tap of the valve top with a 1/2" socket astride the valve stem
>> will help you though ... takes very little force to break the tapered
>> collet's grip. Too much of a hit & the valve spring will tighten it up again
>> on the rebound.
>
> A really good smack with a 5/8" spark plug socket and the collets jump
> out inside the socket - super easy removal. (not that I'd reccommend
> that approach any more than I'd reccommend using a 1/2" drive impact
> wrench for undoing head studs). ;-)

Every collet i have even been near simply flies off into oblivion with even so much a as a fart in it's
direction from me!!


--

Subaru WRX
Range Rover 4.6 HSE (The Tank!)
110 Hi Cap (Ben)

'"Opinions are like arseholes, everyones got one"